


You’re the Worst (But Also the Best)

by MythicalTzu



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Ficlet, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Longing, M/M, Teasing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:15:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24991405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MythicalTzu/pseuds/MythicalTzu
Summary: Maybe he is, maybe he isn't.Written for the prompt, "You're the worst person in the world to share a bed with" for mythicalsecretsanta.
Relationships: Rhett McLaughlin/Link Neal
Comments: 10
Kudos: 48
Collections: Good Mythical Self-Isolation





	You’re the Worst (But Also the Best)

The twin bed is fine, Link tells him once it’s been delivered, but wouldn’t a larger mattress be better? Just in case they decide to work late and don’t want to drive home. With a larger bed, they could both stay the night and sleep comfortably.

Rhett shuts that down immediately.

“No way. You’re the worst person in the world to share a bed with.”

Link sulks. “Am not. What’s so terrible about sharing a bed with me anyway? Because of the occasional spooning? I don’t remember you ever complaining before.”

Rhett gives him an incredulous look. “I don’t have a problem with the spooning, except for the part where it’s summer and you overheat me.”

“What, then?”

“You can’t be serious.”

“Of course I’m serious! You can’t tell a man, your own best friend, that he’s the worst person to share a bed with without giving the reason why.”

Rhett laughs. “Well, for starters, there’s the fact that you sleepwalk.”

“I do not!”

“Do so. I wind up staying half-awake so I can chase you down. Why do you think I put so many locks on the door? It’s not to keep the bad guys out, it’s to give me time to wrestle you away before you make a break for it.”

Link rolls his eyes. “That’s not true. If it were, Christy would have dragged me straight to a sleep study.”

Rhett laughs. “Okay, maybe that’s not true. The real reason is: you talk in your sleep.”

“I do _not_!”

“You absolutely do. It doesn’t bother Christy much because she’s a sound sleeper, but me? I’m half awake most of the night, listening to a non-stop stream of nonsense and confessions. ‘Oh Rhett, you’re so hot.’ ‘Oh Rhett, your beard turns me on.’ ‘Oh Rhett, take me now.’”

Link’s face turns red as his eyes go wide. “That is absolutely not true.”

“How would you know? You’re asleep.”

Link is so embarrassed he can barely form words. “I’d never talk like that. Not even in my sleep.”

“You would and you do. And that’s not even the worst of it.”

Link shakes his head. “If it gets worse, I don’t think I wanna know.”

Rhett grins, thoroughly enjoying himself now. “Oh, but you made a good point. It’s only fair that I tell you. The worst bit is—”

“If you tell me I’m a secret bedwetter, this friendship is over.”

“The worst bit is, you sometimes get confused about who you’re sleeping with. Instead of ‘Oh Rhett, your beard turns me on,’ it’s ‘oh Christie Christie’ while you rub yourself all over me.”

“No. I do not. Take that back.” All traces of amusement fade along with the color in Link’s cheeks.

“Nope. It’s true.” Rhett feels a twinge of something, that same twinge that pings him when he suspects he’s taken a joke too far, but he can’t seem to help himself while he’s on a roll. “Last time we shared a bed together, I woke up with you riding my leg and whimpering her name. I barely intervened in time; a few seconds later and you might have had something serious to discuss with your wife.”

Link’s face turns ashen and his eyes fill with tears. “Are you serious?”

Rhett’s stomach drops. “Hey,” he says, his voice suddenly soft and awkward. “No. None of that happens. I was just, just playing.”

“Oh.” Link takes a moment to pull himself together, rubbing his thumbs behind his glasses and forcing out a laugh that sounds broken. “I’m sorry. Since things went crazy a few months ago, I’m suddenly the guy who can’t take a joke.” 

He drags in a hitching breath and Rhett closes the distance between them, awkwardly wrapping both arms around his friend and half-preparing himself for the possibility of being shoved away. “I’m really sorry,” he murmurs as Link’s chest hitches a few more times. “Hey.” He continues to stand there, rubbing slow circles into Link’s back until he feels the tension start to dissipate. Then he walks them both backwards until they reach their couch and pulls Link down with him.

Link allows himself to be held, nestling in close. “You promise none of that ever happened?”

“Absolutely none of it,” Rhett assures him, tightening his arms briefly before relaxing again. “Well, except for the part about you overheating me, but that’s not entirely your fault.”

“Yeah.” Link sounds happy again, so Rhett closes his eyes so they can rest together. A little nap on the couch isn’t the same as sharing a bed.

Rhett thinks back to all the times he's worried that he might murmur something revealing in his sleep, or touch Link in a way that can't be ignored. He thinks of all the times he's laid awake, terrified that he might give himself away the minute he fell asleep. And as he drifts off, he tells himself that there's absolutely no need to confess the real reasons why Link is the worst person in the world for him to share a bed with.

Link would never believe him now, anyway.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to secondhand_watermelon for your excellent beta reading and encouragement!


End file.
